The thought of protecting yourself against life’s unpredictabilities can be quite daunting. After all – the future is filled with the unknown. While your health insurance policy may offer a stable safety net, it may still be one that’s filled with holes, especially if it’s a basic policy. This is where riders or add-ons come into the picture. In simple words, a rider is an additional cover that you can add to enhance your policy. You can pick riders as per your needs, and pay premiums accordingly.

Let’s understand the different types of add-ons that you can select, and what they offer.

Top 3 Add-ons for your basic health insurance policy

The following add-ons are designed to meet the needs of people from different walks of life:

1.   Maternity and infant cover

Pregnancy comes with its fair share of expenses, and incurring the same can cause most couples to blow through their savings. A typical maternity add-on covers the insured person against:

• Labor and delivery expenses
• Expenses related to complications during labor
• C-Section costs
• Hospital room rent
• Medically necessary terminations
• Infertility treatments (not all companies offer this, however)
• New born baby cover (generally until the full policy year)

Who should get this cover?

The maternity and infant cover is suitable for:

• Young couples who may want to have a child in the next two years (there is a waiting period of 2 years with this cover, and you must remember that when planning your family)
• People who are about to get married and want to be protected against the financial drain of treatments and procedures

Comparing three policies’ offerings on opting  for the maternity benefit: :

Policy Name	General features
Aditya Birla Activ Health Platinum- Enhanced Plan	The sum assured under this plan can range from Rs. 2 lakhs to Rs. 2 Crores, and the plan allocates specific amounts for newborn expenses and maternity expenses.
Care Health Joy Health Insurance Plan	This plan has a waiting period of only 9-months and is suitable for those who have started taking the plunge into family planning (provided the Joy Today plan has been purchased).
SBI Arogya Premier Plan	This plan doesn’t just cover expenses incurred due to allopathic treatments – it also covers treatments under Unani, Ayurveda, Siddha and Homeopathy.

2.   Critical Illness

The term critical illness refers to diseases that can be terminal. Such ailments, such as a heart attack, kidney failure, cancer and so on can have highly expensive treatments that continue for a prolonged period. A critical illness cover can shield you from these expenses so that all you need to worry about is your health. The following are some of the features of a critical illness cover:

• 36 chronic diseases are covered under this add-on
• The insurance provider typically offers a lump sum payment on diagnosis
• It can offer some financial protection against the loss of income as a part of the lump sum amount can be used to keep basic expenses at bay

Who should get this cover?

• If you live in a highly polluted city and are worried about the impact it can have on your health, you should get a critical illness cover
• If you have a family history of critical illnesses, you should apply for this cover to be on the safe side
• If you are the sole breadwinner of your family, then you should get this cover so that in something unfortunate happens, you can still make sure your family is financially afloat

Comparing three critical illness policies

Policy	Features
Aditya Birla Activ Secure- Cancer Secure	This cover is specifically designed to cover the insurer against cancer. On diagnisis, the payout is given in the following way: 50% of the sum assured is given on the diagnosis of early stage diagnosis100% of the sum assured is given on the diagnosis of a major stage diagnosis150% of the sum assured is given on the diagnosis of advanced stage diagnosis
Future Generali Health Insurance – Critical Illness Insurance Plan	This add-on can be used to cover adults as well as children. For adults, the payout would be between Rs 1 Lakh- Rs 50 Lakh. For children, the payout is between Rs 1 Lakh – Rs 20 Lakh.
Royal Sundaram Health Insurance – Lifeline Elite Health Insurance Plan	One must be a minimum of 18 years to be eligible for this plan. The sum assured can range from  Rs 25 Lakh – Rs 1 Crore.

3.   AYUSH Cover

The term AYUSH stands for Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy. As you can imagine, this policy offers cover against non-allopathic treatments. The following are some of the benefits of  picking health insurance policies that offer this add-on:

• The costs of AYUSH treatments are far lower when compared to allopathy.
• These treatments are highly effective and can be good options for minor ailments.
• Lifestyle diseases such as back pain, joint pain and obesity can be managed well with AYUSH treatments.

Who should get policies with this cover?

• If you have elderly parents or grandparents at home, getting a family floater policy with the AYUSH add-on can be very beneficial. This is because older people have weaker bodies that cannot necessarily handle aggressive allopathic treatments. However, they respond well to AYUSH treatments.
• If you live in a remote area, or travel to remote areas frequently and cannot guarantee the presence of a good allopathic hospital, getting this cover can be beneficial. This is because AYUSH treatments are traditional and you’ll be able to find them in different areas of the country.
• If you believe in AYUSH treatments and turn to the same frequently, this cover can help you save money.

Comparing different policies with AYUSH covers:

Policy	Extent of the cover
Future Generali Health Insurance – Health Total	Up to the sum insured
IFFCO Tokio Health Insurance – Individual Medishield Policy	Up to 10% of the sum insured
Care Health Insurance	Up to Rs 30,000 (however this amount can vary based on the policy chosen)

How does adding a cover affect your total premium?

When you add a rider to your health insurance policy, you can expect the policy premium to increase. While each company has its own costs associated with different riders, you can typically expect them to cost anywhere around 5-15% of the base premium. In order to encourage policyholders to customise their policies and add riders, the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has capped how expensive riders can be. They cannot exceed 30% of the lowest premium cost.

Final Thoughts

Understanding the different riders available with different policies is critical as it can help you safeguard yourself and your family against financial drain. Before you pick a policy and your riders, you should sit down with your family and have a chat about your needs and expectations for the future. Doing so will help you plan how you want to customise your health insurance plan in an efficient manner.

FAQS

1. What are the most commonly chosen add-ons for health insurance?

You can choose from a variety of options such as Critical Care, AYUSH, hospital daily expenses add on, emergency ambulance services, OPD insurance cover, medical inflation cover, second medical opinion cover and maternity and infant care cover.

2. When is an AYUSH claim rejected?

Going to an AYUSH practitioner who is not licensed can lead to a claim rejection. Additionally, being hospitalised for under 24 hours can also lead to a rejection as it falls under the exclusions of such policies.

3. Is there a waiting period for health insurance riders?

Yes, as is the case with a regular health insurance policy, the riders also come with a waiting period. For instance, the waiting period for a critical care cover is 30 days. Similarly, the waiting period for maternity care is generally 2 years.